JEAN GREY #6
Writer: Dennis Hopeless
Penciler: Paul Davidson
Colorist: Jay David Ramos
Letterer: VC’S Travis Lanham
Release Date: 08/30/17
Price: $3.99
With the help of Doctor Strange, Jean Grey is ready to face her past selves. She understands now that to face the Phoenix, she must listen to herself first.
Plot
Doctor Strange performs an “exorcism” on Jean Grey to get rid of the spirit communicating with her. It is quickly revealed that it is indeed the “Real” Jean Grey talking to her. No Phoenix, just old Jean showing her moments of her life ghost of Jean Grey Past style. Jean first arrives at a familiar scene to her, a birthday party with the young X-Men.
Her inner voice tells her how undermined she felt by them, constantly getting put into boxes in which she never belonged as an Omega level mutant. Next, the pair arrives at the fight with Acolytes. Jean gets angry watching herself die and lashes out that she never wants to be her. Spirit Jean plain and simply tells her the truth –
Next, Jean is forced to watch the love triangle unfold between Jean, Scott and Emma. She once more pushes aside this moment of humiliation, trying to convince herself she is not this woman. Strange tells Jean that she can no longer run from this. Jean Grey is Her and she is Jean Grey.
Story
Dennis Hopeless does amazing work with this issue of Jean Grey. He takes the Jean Grey we think we know from the past and reinvents her. We get this opportunity to see Jean angry, hurt, frustrated and undermined to an extent she was never allowed before. The rapport between the Jean of the past and the current Jean is exceptionally well done with the dialogue constantly moving with barely a moment break.
While the past issues of this run have felt stale, this one gets woken up with the help of both Jeans coexisting together. Jean is able to confront issues she has with herself, the way her anger explodes, the things she hides and most importantly the reasons she dismisses her past. Hopeless finally takes the biggest issue Jean is facing and concludes it – Jean Grey is Jean Grey and there’s nothing she can do about it. It was an exceptionally important moment that will move this story forward.
Doctor Strange is also the best guest appearance in this run yet. He fit in well and moved the plot forward from the sidelines, never taking the plot over completely. Hopeless also wrote him primarily comedic and eccentric which was a nice thing to see mixed in with the overall seriousness of this issue.
Art
If you were to take away all the dialogue of this issue of Jean Grey, it would remain just as good. Paul Davidson creates jaw dropping mythical art through the spirit realm our characters are in.
Limbs are moving weirdly, expressions are just as confused as ours and the world in these pages feels exactly how we want it to feel. Davidson also has the task of recreating moments of Jean’s past in this issue. Thankfully, he does it flawlessly and mimics the time period of each X-Moment perfectly.
Lastly, is the beautiful colors done by Jay David Ramos. Each color is more vibrant than the next, each moment colored to perfection and the fiery red of the Phoenix is powerful. The pair of them creates such a wonderful landscape of art within this comic. Even though sometimes Jean still feels oddly drawn, the rest of the art overshadows that small mistake.
Verdict
If you have felt let down by the Jean Grey story at all, look no further. What the team of Jean Grey brings forward this issue is pure gold. The story is engaging, the dialogue is fast paced, and the art is simply stunning. What Hopeless previews for the coming issues of Jean Grey is just as interesting. It will be great to read our Jean Grey learning how to accept that she is That Jean Grey. This is for sure a pick up for the fans of the run and more importantly any skeptics. This isn’t the same X-Men landscape as before and that’s okay! They will always be those characters but they are also these ones.
Star Rating
5/5